The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for penetrating armor and, more particularly, to an armor piercing projectile.
The use of armor to protect a combatant is wide spread on the modern battle field. An armored battle field vehicle, such as a tank, is not only heavily armed, its armor protects the vehicle""s crew from exposure to enemy forces. Such armored vehicles pose a high degree of threat to any attacking force. Furthermore, an active protection is often used by armored vehicles to provide further protection. Namely, shields containing water, explosives and a combination thereof are placed on an exterior surface of the armor, such that a substantially equal and opposite force is applied against an impacting projectile, thus reducing the penetrative capability of the impacting projectile.
A defending force, protecting itself with conventional ballistic projectiles, aim such projectiles by means of sights mounted on the barrel of a gun. Similarly, missiles and other small projectiles are designed to be fired at the attacking target. While various attempts have been made to provide accurate projectiles and missiles, enabling the defending force to fire their weapons while keeping a safe distance from the target, all too often the projectiles reach their target with insufficient velocity to penetrate a vehicle""s protective armor. Drag caused by air resistance rapidly reduces the velocity of a projectile. In order for a projectile to hit the armored vehicle with a velocity sufficient for the projectile to penetrate the target""s armor, the defending force must either move closer to the target or wait for the armored vehicle to move closer to them. The reduction of distance between the defending force and the attacking armored vehicle, exposes the defending force to an ever increasing danger.
Some battle vehicles are so heavily armored, that their armor protects the vehicle""s crew from an attack at close proximity. Worse still, modern battle field vehicles often have reactive armor. Even if the modern armored vehicle were to be attacked by a projectile that hits the vehicle""s surface with sufficient ability to penetrate its armor, the reactive armor, once triggered, reduces the projectile kinetic energy, preventing any serious damage to the vehicle.
Defending ground forces experience similar problems when encountering armored helicopters and other armored ground attack aircraft.
Ground installations are often similarly hardened to protect themselves against attack. Armored installations often house command and control centers operating surface to air installations hostile to aircraft flying overhead. In order to neutralize such a threat, an attacking aircraft launches either free falling ordnance or missiles at the target, only to discover the same problem posed by the tank. Indeed, xe2x80x98air-strikes xe2x80x99 are designed to assist a defending force often prove to be ineffectual against an armored vehicle. The cruise speed of air to surface arms being too low to provide sufficient force to penetrate a target""s armor.
There is thus a widely recognized need for, and it would be highly advantageous to have, a long range projectile that impacts its target at penetrating velocity and more particularly, for a high velocity armor piercing shell.
According to the present invention there is provided a projectile for piercing armor. The projectile includes an acceleration rocket motor, for driving the projectile from a cruise velocity to a penetration velocity after the projectile has been launched. The penetration velocity is reached when the projectile impacts with its target. The projectile includes a cruising rocket motor to maintain the projectile""s cruise velocity.
According to one embodiment of the present invention, the projectile is a missile.
According to another embodiment of the present invention, the projectile is a shell. Preferably the shell is launched from a tank.
According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the projectile further includes an armor piercing rod seated within the projectile for piercing armor.
According to still further features in the described preferred embodiments, the projectile further includes at least one countermeasure to a reacting target. Preferably the countermeasure includes an advance projectile associated with the projectile, for neutralizing a target""s reactive armor. In one embodiment, the advance projectile is a bullet.
According to another embodiment, the projectile further includes an electronic system to alter the projectile""s trajectory during flight.
The present invention successfully addresses the shortcomings of the presently known configurations by providing a long range projectile that can strike its target at a sufficiently high speed to penetrate armor.
The present invention discloses a novel method for piercing armor. The method includes the steps of launching a projectile at a target; increasing the projectile""s velocity so as to reach a suitable penetration velocity and striking the target with the projectile at the penetrating velocity.
According to one embodiment of the present invention, the method includes the step of maintaining the cruise velocity of the projectile by the cruise motor to reduce deflection of the projectile by side wind, prior to increasing the velocity of the projectile to its impact penetration velocity.
According to one embodiment of the present invention, the method includes penetrating a target""s armor with a portion of the projectile, such as by an armor piercing rod seated in the projectile.
According to another embodiment of the present invention, the method further includes employing countermeasures against a reacting target prior to the projectile striking the target.